My dad has had several blood clots in his leg over the past several months, which he has been hospitalized for several times. Recently he s been having pain interspersed with numbness in his legs that is only relieved by lying down. Sitting or standing is painful. In the past few days the pain has been spreading to his lower back, ears, neck, and shoulders, and his hands are numb. The pain has also become more severe. He s been telling me his doctors have been looking into his nerves as a source of the pain. He drank heavily (~2 liters vodka a day) for many years, has been sober for about 13 years, and has smoked heavily (likely 2 packs a day) for most of his life. We have a family history of Lupus, diabetes, alcoholism, and drug addiction from both his parents. His wife informed me he was recently diagnosed with COPD. He s 55. I can t rely on him to tell me the truth. While he s quick to lament his symptoms and pain and doctors visits, he s just as quick to lie about any diagnosis that could be traced back to his bad choices. Because that would mean my family was right to confront him about his problems, and he would have to be held accountable for his own health. He told me today not to worry because this likely isn t anything serious, maybe a pinched nerve. Could these symptoms over all this time really be a pinched nerve? And if so, is that still a likely diagnosis if that hasn t been found on all his previous neruologic diagnostics?